


Gratitude and Other Delicacies

by LibertinePast



Category: Cobra Kai (Web Series), Karate Kid (Movies)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-22
Updated: 2018-11-22
Packaged: 2019-08-27 10:09:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16700482
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LibertinePast/pseuds/LibertinePast
Summary: A Very LawRusso Thanksgiving. One-shot.  Johnny has to face Lucille, and finds out how Daniel and Ali broke up. Johnny and Daniel turn to each other.





	Gratitude and Other Delicacies

**Author's Note:**

> This is not a part of the Foreigner series- just a one-shot that came to life when I was stuck at a car dealership that had an 80's radio station on. LawRusso thoughts ensued! Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 

_**November 22, 2018** _

 

 It had been a while since Johnny Lawrence had seen napkin rings, but he was all too familiar with them.

He remembered 70's ones that were white porcelain with a strawberry pattern. He smiled to himself, thinking of his mother. The modern, diamond-studded rings at the LaRusso’s table were much different from hers, but at least Sid wouldn’t have made fun of them.

Johnny was having Thanksgiving dinner with the LaRussos, because he had nowhere else to go.

The Santa Ana winds had brought wildfires to Reseda, and Johnny’s apartment was destroyed. Daniel had fallen out of his rolling office chair when he saw the images on the news. He tried to tell himself he was panicking about his newly renovated dojo, or the Super Deluxe, but he knew in his heart they were unscathed. He felt a boom box slamming into his sternum, but this time from the inside.

Johnny looked at Daniel, who was very in his element when garnishing his dishes, pouring wine, straightening napkins. A small smile passed over his lips. He realized the way LaRusso’s demeanor usually mirrored his own, ever since he came to town. Now, Johnny felt a strange warmth and contentment. Well, either that, or he’d peed in his pants.

Daniel looked at Johnny, his personified trauma breaking bread with his family. _Indelible in the hippocampus is the laughter_ , Daniel thought, like the doctor at the Supreme Court hearing, and he couldn’t agree more about the Cobras.

But he had to admit, this wasn’t so bad.

And Johnny had to admit he was a little intimidated by the woman who had raised this obsessive spitfire all on her own.

“Could you…” Johnny found a small voice to ask Lucille LaRusso. “…um, could you pass the potatoes, please.” All the staples were near her. Johnny could’ve sworn he’d been set-up.

Lucille’s eyes narrowed, as they’d been doing most of the afternoon. “I would be _glad_ to, John,” she snipped as she sent them his way. “Would you like some cranberry sauce, too, or will the sight of it ignite your lust for blood?”

“Ma,” Daniel nudged. “I invited him, remember?”

“Because you think everything is your fault. You thought your father got cancer because you didn’t want to take the garbage out. Now you feel responsible for this big galoot,” she thumbed at Johnny, "for reasons nobody comprehends." 

“Myeah, tot’ly,” Anthony added, gnawing on a turkey leg.

“Nobody asked you, Captain Lou Albano,” Johnny shot back at the kid.

“Whatever, Biff,” Anthony griped.

“Everybody knock it off,” Daniel growled. “You with the cut-rate psychoanalysis, Ma, and you two trolls.”

Johnny and Anthony exchanged barbs under their breath.

“I thought Mr. Robby Radiant would be joining us,” Lucile frowned.

“I didn’t want to intrude on his tradition. He goes out to dinner with his mom every Thanksgiving,” Daniel said.

“Yeah,” Johnny snorted. “And some balding poindexter who actually pays for it.”

Lucille ignored him. “ _Che begli occhi_ on that kid. I’ve never seen eyes so green, like jadeite,” Lucille said.

“That’s from my mother,” Johnny cut in. “All my buddies thought my stepdad got her alien contact lenses from his movie studio. But they’re the real deal. Wish I could’ve gotten those eyes.”

Daniel studied Johnny’s lit-up face. If he’d heard him talk about his mother back in the day, things would've been different. “Yeah, what a shame you had to settle for steel blue,” Daniel said, pushing the thought away.

Johnny laughed into his squash.

Lucille rolled her eyes. “You should’ve seen my face when I found out _you_ were Robby’s father. I was like the ladies on Maury Povich who start screaming and doing laps backstage.”

Amanda shook her head at her mother-in-law. “Lucille, can you just be- I dunno- _nice_ , in the spirit of Thanksgiving?“

“Oh, please. The pilgrims gave smallpox-ridden blankets to the Indians, on purpose. Must’ve been _his_ ancestors,” Lucille threw Johnny’s way.

“That was the Siege of Fort Pitt in 1763, Grandma,” Sam sighed.

“Oh, Sammy-chan, you’re wicked smart, but just go with me on this.”

“Could everyone just eat before everything gets cold?” Daniel groaned.

Anthony rolled his eyes. "We have a microwave, Dad." 

“Wow. I never thought I’d be dying for someone to bring up politics today,” Amanda smiled wryly.

The food was good, very good. Melting on the tongue. The bird had a kick to it, Johnny noticed, no pun intended. LaRusso didn’t do anything half-heartedly. Only the sound of pinging forks and chewing could be heard for a bit, along with the swanky playlist of Frank Sinatra and Michael Bublé. Suddenly, the Robert Plant version of "Sea of Love" from the 80’s came on.

“Good tune,” Johnny said in between bites. “Senior prom vibes.”

He knew Johnny had mentioned this innocuously, because by some miracle, the rumor mill had never reached him about what happened that night. The hairs on Daniel’s neck stood up. Few things could trigger Lucille LaRusso like the words “senior prom.”

She slammed down her fork. “As long as I live, I’ll never forget what that Ali did to my little Meemo.”

Daniel started coughing up the wine he’d just inhaled. Amanda’s muttered “oh no” was very audible.

“Real-ly,” Johnny grinned. “I never heard this story, _Meemo_.” He shot Daniel a devilish look. “I’m not surprised, Mrs. L., that girl did a number on me, too.”

“Well, let me tell you, nobody deserves the Ali-Cat Kiss-Off, not even a ruffian like you. I loved that girl like a daughter, and she turned around and-“

Daniel cringed, “It’s really not that interesting-“

“Wrecked his car, dumped him, and said she’d fallen in love with a football player!” Lucille said. “Someone with a perennial concussion over a catch like this? Still, at least I didn’t have to worry about them having any funny business at a hotel afterwards.”

Johnny was having way too much fun with this. “No, you didn’t.” He took a swig of his ice water, steel blue eyes grinning at Daniel over the glass. This was much better than getting lectured that little Meemo’s chest hairs had never grown in because of the hot marinara sauce, or something.

After dessert, Amanda and Lucile were arguing over the right way to make bone broth, Anthony was engrossed in a game, and Daniel was rearranging the already loaded dishwasher. Sam approached Johnny quietly. “Sensei Lawrence?”

“No, you can’t join Cobra Kai. Just shittin’, what d’you want?” he answered her scrunched nose.

“How is Miguel doing? After the fire and everything.”

“He’s ok. He got his mom and Yaya out of there, some real _Backdraft_ kinda shit. I was pretty proud of him.”

“He might not have had the courage to do that before he trained with you. Thank you.”

“Welcome,” he said softly.

* * *

Later, Daniel found Johnny sitting outside by the pool. He was staring out at the water like he used to at Lake Calabasas, with a whole summer of possibilities unfolding in front of him.

“You know, your daughter’s not half bad,” Johnny said. “She really cares about one of my students.”

“Yeah, Aisha’s pretty great,” Daniel said, sitting next to him on the retaining wall as Johnny laughed to himself. “I’m glad you and my mother found something to bond over, as well.”

“You looked like you were gonna piss your pants. Dude, I obviously knew you and Ali broke up- uh, doiee. I just didn’t know how. I’m shocked Barbara and Susan didn’t spill that juice. They hated you.”

“Well, maybe even they were capable of mercy. It was embarrassing to the max,” he sighed.

“Classic catalyst, that Mills. Changes everything around her, but doesn’t change. Or ever learn, apparently. Heh. A football player.” He shook his head.

“Yeah. But worse than that...it always makes me feel like all the terrible shit between you and I was completely pointless.”

 _Indelible in the hippocampus is the laughter_ , Daniel thought. But as he looked at Johnny in the moonlight, that raucous laughter didn’t reach him.

“It got us here, right? With our own dojos. Getting that fire back, that passion for doing something we actually like. Hell, I almost forgot I was homeless tonight because….”

The end of that sentence was etched on Daniel’s face as Johnny was silent for a bit. Daniel’s eyes were swollen with a look of loyalty and long-suffering that reminded Johnny of the Grinch’s dog.

“…What kind of cancer did your dad have?” Johnny asked. “I’m not being nosy or anything. I actually care.”

Daniel drifted closer. “…Testicular. It uh…spread to his liver and bones. We did a home hospice in the middle of our little apartment, with all these crazy loud visitors. It was so weird, I mean…it’s the morphine that kills the person. We were killing him, little by little, while we sat there yakkin’ away, eating a big tray of cookies.”

“I’m sorry. At least you got to say goodbye, though.”

Daniel frowned. “What happened to your mom? Your whole face changes when you talk about her, but it’s definitely in a wistful way.”

“Yeah. She was an anomaly in this shitty world, that’s for sure. She took care of me right til the end. She was…coming to pick me up from the airport, I was like twenty or so. I’d gotten kicked out of Georgetown for having weed. Too bad you weren’t there with the hose.”

“Right? I probably stopped you from getting expelled from West Valley, if you think about it.”

“Perspective, man, seriously….”

Daniel waited for him to gather strength. It didn’t take long.

“…she got in a really bad accident on interstate 5. My stepdad insisted on having an open casket, but that never should’ve happened. It didn’t even look like her. Thanks to that asshole, that’s the final picture of her I have in my mind. Sometimes I think he wanted it that way, because he blamed me.”

“Oh my God, I….” Daniel breathed. He placed a hand on Johnny’s shoulder. “Johnny, that’s awful, I’m so sorry.”

Daniel realized his hand was lingering, even brushing lightly. He went to draw it back and Johnny held it down on his own shoulder. “LaRusso…is it true, what your mother said in there? You feel responsible for me? I mean, I _could_ blame your stupid bonsai trees for the drought that caused the wildfire…”

Daniel squinted at him. “I….I feel responsible because everything’s been so entangled since Sam crashed into you…in that same parking lot. The one where I did nothing to help you.”

“You tried, man. I saw you limping over like a greyhound.”

“I was just following Mr. Miyagi.”

“I remember seeing you first.”

Daniel was sure that a person’s brain was foggy when they were being strangled, but he smiled anyway. “I’m sure it’s only because I was taller.”

“Maybe I feel responsible for you, too. Like…you break it, you bought it, right?”

Daniel flashed a lop-sided smile. “No returns, no exchanges.”

“Can I ask you something kinda personal…?”

Daniel shrugged.

“…considering the way your dad passed, do you…y’know. Check your family jewels?”

“What are you, a urologist? Are we really having this conversation right now?”

“Do you check them?”

Daniel stood up from the retaining wall and turned away. “…No. I don’t. Too scared.”

“That’s pretty stupid.”

“I know.”

“Then somebody has to be responsible for you.”

Johnny’s stood up and his hands moved to Daniel’s zipper, easing it down. Daniel didn’t flinch, didn’t blink. He felt like he was in the fluid oxygen from that movie _The Abyss._ Johnny cupped one testicle at a time, moving it in between his thumb and index finger. Johnny saw in Daniel’s expression the lost look of the boy peering through the swinging door of Encino Oaks’ kitchen, until Daniel closed his eyes and whimpered through his teeth.

Johnny _was_ earnestly examining the sensitive flesh in his hands, even though Daniel’s face was anything but clinical. When he pulled away, Daniel was purely astonished by his desire.

“Well, I didn’t find anything...” Johnny said quietly, re-zipping his patient.

Daniel’s eyes looked bottomless. “I-I think you found _something._ ”

“Would you look at the time,” Johnny smirked. “I gotta go. What, I have a pile of mats to sleep on in my office,” he answered Daniel’s concerned look.

“Why don’t you stay here?” Daniel said.

“I haven’t even had anything to drink. What would be the excuse?”

“The tryptophan. In the turkey. You can’t drive.”

“Worst excuse ever.”

“Because I don’t want you to sleep on a mat,” Daniel admitted. “Because I’m thankful that cobras are faster than wildfires. And…I can make you and my mother share a Jack and Jill bathroom. Should be interesting.”

Johnny shook his head. “You’re a piece of work, you know that?”

 

 

* * *

 


End file.
